Exiled: Jedi Report
by Shadows Of The Storm
Summary: Republic bounty hunter Kiana Shale, a Jedi exiled that once went by the name Tyla Moore, is being sent to defeat a Sith Lord. Already been stated that she must work with Jedi. Don't know who is being sent. Will find out when she reports in.
1. Chapter 1

_Revan laughed, poking Tyla in the side. Tyla glared at her and poked her back when she was jumped on from someone behind her. Electric blue hair fell in front of her eyes, and she pushed the girl off of her. Aurali landed on the floor and glared up at Tyla. She teased Tyla with something, and the entire group was silent for a moment, then burst out laughing with Aurali rolling on the floor._

Kiana woke up with a start, and she glanced around quickly. Yep, she was still in the same, dirty apartment she had fallen asleep in. She glanced outside the small window and saw that the city was locked into the darkest part of its never-ending night. She sighed, pushing her white hair back.

"Damn nightmares." She muttered to herself as she got off the bed and walked over to the closet. They had been getting worse and worse lately. The last time she had been plagued by those dreams were right after her exile, before Jadowyn had even hired her. Why they were coming back now randomly was off-putting. The huntress didn't like it whatsoever. _Those days are over. Tyla is no more._ Kiana thought to herself as she pulled on her clothes and strapped her two vibroswords to her side. She pulled her long, white hair back into a loose ponytail and looked at her reflection. If she had ever run into one of the people that used to know her, there was no way they would recognize her now.

Her hair had grown out so far that even pulled back it fell to her waist, and her face had matured a lot. Whether that was from the war or exile, or both, she would never know but she didn't look as young as she had back all those years ago. She also never would have worn anything like this willingly back then.

The short dress looked like it would give little protection, but the lower layer of it was backed in tough armor. The boots were armor within themselves so that wasn't an issue. Her neck, wrists, and shoulders were protected with the same type of armor that her boots were. Her arms and a part of her legs were exposed, but that just meant she had to be extra careful in a fight. She shook her head and turned around, breaking herself out of her thoughts.

She sighed and stepped out into the cool night air and took a look around. Coruscant was as busy as ever. She walked over to her speeder and turned it on, taking off into the air. She took a sharp turn suddenly, even though it would take her longer to get to her destination. She didn't want to see that place, not right now at least.

She was navigating through one of the darker places on Coruscant when she heard a sound below her. She looked down just in time to see a blaster shot come straight up.

"What the-" she yelled, veering sharply to the left to avoid it. Another round of blaster shots came after her as she burst out into mainstream Coruscant traffic. There were some screams and soon the blaster bolts were absorbed by darkness when they got too far away. She cursed loudly when three speeders came up behind her, filled with people.

"Why me?" she demanded to herself as she put the speeder on auto-pilot. She reached over and grabbed her blaster from the ground and turned around, aiming at the driver in the lead speeder. Kiana let loose a flurry of shots, and one hit him in the arm, forcing him to let go of the speeder for a second. "I hate blasters." She muttered as she took aim again, targeting his other arm. This one hit its target directly and he yelped as he grabbed his injured hand, and the speeder went out of control.

She was shot at again, and whoever had the blaster was a good shot. Smoke started to billow out from underneath her speeder and she couldn't control the controls any more. She was forced to find a spot where she could land her speeder. Desperately looking around, the exile just managed to find a small, abandoned strip of land. It was large enough for a couple vehicles and she would still have plenty of room to fight. _Just what I need._ She had just landed her craft and jumped out when the two remaining speeders showed up. She pulled out both vibroswords as the rest of her attackers jumped out, armed with blades and blasters.

The blade users charged her and she blocked the first waves of attacks, falling back on her former training. These people were good though, and she was failing against their superior numbers. A blaster shot caught her in the leg and she hissed with pain. When Kiana did though, the attackers let their arrogance get the best of them, and the exile was able to slice two of them down before they realized their mistake. Only two left.

She went after the next two, and the first was too slow to draw his blade. He fell down in a small, bloody pool, but the attack had given the other one enough time to draw his blade and prepare for her. He put up a valiant fight, but he was nothing more than a young teen and he wasn't a match for her skill with a blade. She kicked him in the stomach and he fell to his knees painfully. She brought her sword to his throat and he looked up at her.

"Who do you work for?" she demanded, her voice cold. He glared up at her defiantly, but when the young human spoke his voice was shaking.

"I don't know. He just hired us, saying that he would pay us a great amount if we can take down this bounty hunter." He answered, throwing a datapad at her. Kiana caught it easily and read it quickly, often looking back at the boy. What she saw disturbed her. A detailed description, along with her usual habits and acquaintances were all listed in the datapad.

"Did he say why he wanted me dead?" Kiana demanded, though her voice was softer than before. It was obvious to her that this was just some kid that was abandoned and was trying to do whatever it took to survive on the streets. There was no need to kill him…yet. If he even looked at her funny though, the boy's head would be rolling.

"No, just that it was vital you were killed." He replied, and she thought for a moment before she gave a nearly inaudible sigh. She brought her face close to his, the cold metal of her sword pressing into his throat.

"I'm going to let you go, but if you tell _anybody_ where I am or that I'm still alive, I will hunt you down. And let's just say that it won't be a slap on the wrist, okay?" She growled, her voice low. The boy gulped and nodded very slightly, not wanting her blade to cut into his neck. She removed her vibrosword away from him and he quickly limped back to one of his dead teammate's speeders and went off into the night.

Kiana growled and wiped her swords off on the clothes of one of the bodies. It was a shame that such beautiful craftsmanship had to go to waste. Both blades were totally unique to her and only her, but they were twins of each other. The handle was tipped with a single, onyx stone that glinted dangerously in the light. The blade itself was curved ever-so-slightly at the end to give it an extra-deadly whip that sliced through bodies as easily as a knife through thin cheese. The tang itself was covered by a dark, swirling design that caught the eye and was a good distraction for the easily amused.

Shaking her head, she walked back to her own speeder while favoring her injured leg. She reached inside and pulled out a small medpac, injecting it into her leg. The kolto worked its way through her blood and she sighed in relief as the pain subsided into a dull pulse.

"Apparently I haven't covered my tracks well enough." She thought out loud as she glanced at the datapad and threw it into the speeder. "Or maybe they really are just after me because I'm a bounty hunter." She was debating this mentally as she fixed her speeder and got it started again. Soon enough Kiana was back in the night air as she got back on track to her destination.

She landed minutes later in front of an immense structure, and there was a lot of traffic in and out of it. It was a Republic building after all. She got out of the speeder, grabbing her pack, weapons, and the datapad that the kid had thrown at her. She attached her swords to her side while she tucked a blaster into one of the pockets on her belt. Kiana put on the pack and grabbed the datapad in her hand as she walked into the building.

When she got inside she received a lot of open stares, but she ignored them. She had gotten used to them after all. Most of the people that worked here were normal civilians that just happened to work for the Republic, and a few soldiers were here and there. But she definitely did not look like a soldier, and she knew it. She approached the turbolift when a soldier stopped her.

"Stop…citizen. This is a restricted area." He commanded, looking her up and down slightly. She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest.

"It's not to me."

"Name?"

"Kiana Shale." She snapped back, and the man scrolled through a datapad he was holding.

"I don't see your name on here miss."

"No it's not because the Republic doesn't put bounty hunter names on their official rosters!" she commented loudly, and several people turned to look at the pair. The Republic officer's eyes widened and he lowered his voice to a low whisper.

"You're her?"

"Yes, now let me in!" she commanded, and the turbolift door slid open. Inside was a young woman. She was quite pretty with dark blue and black hair, and she was dressed in a very nice outfit. _She still looks a lot like Aura._ The thought ran through her head before she could stop it, and she mentally berated herself for it.

"Miss Shale, we are glad to see you safe. We heard about the attack." She commented quietly, and Kiana scowled.

"Really, then why didn't you help me out?" She demanded coldly, but the girl merely smiled.

"We only saw the final part of the battle, and it was apparent that you had taken care of everything by yourself."

"Thanks guys, I can see how much you care." Kiana commented sarcastically, and the girl talked to the Republic officer quietly.

"Of course Miss Shi. I was unaware of who she was." He saluted, and Skylar waved Kiana into the turbolift. A few seconds later the door opened into a magnificent office. The chair behind the gigantic desk was facing the huge window which gave an excellent view of Coruscant. Kiana walked in and turned around, and Skylar smiled and waved as the turbolift door closed.

"Miss Shale, I'm glad to see that you are safe." A male voice said, and Kiana walked over to the desk, sliding the datapad across the desk. His hand reached out a grabbed it, and the datapad disappeared as he read it.

"Yeah, well its no thanks to you guys." She said dryly as she sunk into one of the soft chairs.

"You're quite the capable woman. You can take care of yourself." He replied as he finished reading the datapad. He swung the chair around and Kiana had to admire his features.

He had jet black, shaggy hair that stopped right around his neck. His hazel eyes shone even in the dark office, and the lights from the Coruscant highlighted his broad shoulders and toned muscles. He wasn't human, but he certainly was handsome, and he was a nice man that knew how to get the job done. _That's why he hired you…mostly. I think._ Her inner brain said, but she shook those thoughts away. She had more important things to worry about than her employer's motives in hiring her.

"So, why did you need me Jadowyn?" She asked, getting straight to the point. Another job meant more pay. She needed credits more than ever now. Jadowyn stood up and went over to another part of the office, grabbing a datapad and a chip. He walked back over to Kiana and played the chip. An image of a tall man wrapped in a dark cloak appeared and Jadowyn tossed the datapad over to Kiana.

"Your next target is a Sith Lord. We don't know his name or his appearance, but he is a very dangerous criminal. He has killed several Republic soldiers and even a few Jedi." He explained, his hands landing on Kiana's shoulders. She looked up at him with a disapproving look.

"He has killed Jedi and you expect me to take him down?" She asked, disbelief in her voice. He didn't even know about her past (entirely) and he was sending her after Sith! Just her luck. Jadowyn leaned down and set his head on her shoulder.

"Yes, but you are the best damn fighter I know, and you are absolutely brilliant. And…" Jadowyn trailed off as he began to rub her already sore arms. It typically felt good, but Kiana was far too tense at the moment to feel it.

"And what?" Kiana demanded suspiciously. She had always trusted Jadowyn to do what was best for her and he knew that. He had never betrayed her or done anything to remotely piss her off. He had even obeyed her commands to not touch her.

"And the Jedi Council has sent two Jedi to assist you in this matter." He finished, and Kiana shot out of the chair in shock. Jadowyn stumbled with the sudden movement but caught himself at the last moment before he would have made a very embarrassing move.

"What? Jedi? You have to be kidding me!" Kiana yelled angrily, and Jadowyn reached out, trying to placate her.

"I know, I dislike Jedi too. They always looked down on us common folk. But they don't think you can do this on your own so they are sending Jedi with you." Jadowyn explained, and Kiana's eyes narrowed, ignoring the remark about the Jedi.

"Fine, but the bounty is mine! And who are they sending?" She asked, walking over to the window and glaring at it like she could make it explode. Why was this happening to her?

"The council wouldn't tell me, but the Jedi will be waiting for you at the docks with a ship." Jadowyn told her, coming up behind her. Kiana walked away from him and picked up the dropped datapad and she took the chip, shoving them into her pack.

"All right, where am I going?"

"Just leave this building. Somebody should be waiting for you outside to take you to the docks. And," Jadowyn paused as Kiana opened the turbolift door and she turned to face him, "good luck." She nodded at him briefly and she went down the turbolift, fuming and worry coursing through her mind.

She had to work with Jedi. The same people she had been trying to avoid since her exile and she had been doing a great job so far. And now, she had to work with them. Fabulous! The turbolift door opened and she stepped out, trying to keep her cool. Outside the building a speeder was indeed waiting for her, along with a person dressed in normal clothing.

"Greetings. I will be taking you to the docks." He said politely, and she gave him a skeptical look.

"Jedi?"

"Is it that obvious?"

"Normal Coruscant citizens aren't as polite as you are." Kiana explained as she jumped into the other seat of the speeder. The kid got into the drivers seat and went into the air, quickly taking her to the docks. When they landed, Kiana got out and tossed some credits at him, knowing fully well that he was going to not want to take them.

"I shouldn't keep these." Yep, there it was.

"Go ahead and go buy yourself some food. The stuff the Jedi feed you can't be all that amazing." She commented, thinking back to some of the food she had when she had still been an apprentice and not yet to any higher rank. It hadn't been the best thing in the galaxy. The Padawan blushed slightly as he pocketed the credits and went off into the night. She turned back to the busy docks and looked at the specific dock where he had dropped her off at.

A girl was waiting outside for her and she was glancing around. She was wearing normal Padawan robes, but she was also wearing a small veil that covered he eyes and her hair. _I wonder what that's about._ Kiana thought briefly before the girl noticed her. She ran to Kiana, smiling brightly.

"You're Kiana right? Hello, I'm Padawan Erina Dex. My Master is waiting for you inside." The girl said excitedly, and when she turned around Kiana secretly smiled at her. _This girl is Aurali hyper._ She scowled at herself for allowing that through. The girl was running off when Kiana reached out and grabbed the Padawan's shoulder.

"Excuse me, but…what are you?" Kiana asked, not thinking of any other way she could ask that politely. She just smiled at Kiana though and shrugged her shoulders lightly.

"It's okay. I get that question a lot. I'm a Miraluka." She explained and then she was off again, bouncing off to the bay. Kiana stared after the girl, amazement clear on her face. She trailed after the girl as she opened the door and walked in. A robed person was facing a small ship, and the girl skipped over to him.

"She's here Master!" the girl said excitedly, and he patted her on the shoulder as he turned around, smiling at the newcomer. Kiana's heart stopped dead when she saw him.

"Hello. This is my Padawan Erina Dex, and I'm Master Kavar." He explained, holding his hand out to Kiana.

Oh…shit.

_Anything familiar belongs to LucasArts/Bioware/Obsidian. Tyla Moore/Kiana Shale belongs to Shadows of the Storm. Aurali Adrics/Leila Cross belong to Aurali Adrics._

Exiled © Shadows of the Storm


	2. Chapter 2

Kiana stared at him for a few moments, her heart and mind refusing to work properly. He tilted his head slightly at her and dropped his hand.

"Are you okay?" He asked, and Kiana shook her head violently.

"Oh, I'm sorry. You just look like someone I used to know." She blurted out, and then mentally slapped herself. _Way to go Kiana!_ He laughed lightly and turned back to his Padawan. Suddenly she didn't seem as sweet anymore. _Oh, get a hold of yourself. You aren't Tyla anymore! This means nothing to you!_ She yelled at herself, but another voice kept arguing with her. _Oh it means something to you! Say something!_ The voice shouted, and Kiana looked up at the sky, wondering when she had gone insane.

"Erina, please go prepare the ship. Kiana and I will be there in a moment." He told the girl, and she nodded as she quickly ran into the open ship door. He turned back to Kiana and waved a hand in front of her face.

"You still there?" He asked, and Kiana blinked. She hadn't realized that she had been staring.

"Oh yeah. Sorry, I've been doing a lot of thinking lately." She muttered to herself, and her mental voice added something to that. _Yep, a lot of thinking _very_ recently!_ She growled at her mental voice then tuned back into the real world.

"What have you been told about the target?" Kavar asked, and Kiana was all business again.

"Nothing much besides that he is a Sith Lord that has killed several Republic soldiers and some Jedi." She explained, thinking back to what Jadowyn told her. He nodded and walked onto the ship, and Kiana trailed after him. Erina had indeed prepared the ship and everything was in working order. Kiana was surprised. She still wasn't sure how the girl could see.

"Everything is working Master." She said as they entered, and Kavar sat down in the pilot's chair, checking over his Padawan's work. Without wanting to, memories of when he had done the same thing for her worked their way into the front of her thoughts, and she had to force them back.

"Everything looks good. Good job Erina." He finally said when he finished, and Erina smiled at him. Tyla was surfacing again, and Kiana had to push her former self down. _Tyla doesn't exist anymore. I am Kiana. _She kept repeating the words in her head, and Tyla kept denying them, making it plain and clear that she was alive and kicking.

"I've already set the course in as well." Erina commented, and Kavar complimented her on it. _Damn initiative taking kid. I was a lazy Padawan._ Tyla growled, and Kiana mentally clutched her head. There were too many voices in her head! She looked up right as Kavar closed the ship door and Kiana looked at it desperately. _No chance of escape now!_

The ship took into the air and after a few moments he let Erina take over. He walked out of the cockpit, motioning for Kiana to follow. She did with one last look at the Padawan. He took her out into the main hold where some chairs and couches were. He took a seat on one of the couches and Kiana sat in a chair across from him.

"You know I don't bite." He laughed, but Tyla said something that contradicted that so badly that it made Kiana look down to hide her blush.

"You never know with you Jedi." She said, looking up, but it sounded a lot more suggestive than it was supposed to. Kavar peered at her while Tyla laughed manically in Kiana's head. _Damn you Tyla! _Kiana yelled at her former self, but said self didn't seem to care. Kiana looked down again, feeling very small under his gaze.

"You remind me a lot of…no, it doesn't matter." He trailed off, and Kiana was curious despite herself.

"Remind you of who?" She asked, her head tilted slightly to the side. Erina chose this moment to prance in and plop down beside Kiana.

"Oh, are you talking about your former Padawan? The one you refuse to talk about?" Erina asked, and Kiana looked at him, feigning innocent interest. Tyla however was yelling something at Kiana that she was entirely ignoring.

"Erina." He admonished.

"Sorry." She apologized with a sheepish shrug as she looked back up at Kiana. "He's always telling me not to ask about her." Erina finished, and Kiana looked back over at Kavar.

"Now I'm interested. Do tell." She stated, bringing her hands underneath her face, leaning forward slightly. She couldn't help it. She wanted to know what he would say about her to other people.

"All right, I guess I can tell you now. But there were reasons for me waiting this long." He started, but he seemed hesitant. Kiana didn't blame him "Her name was Tyla Moore. Basically imagine our friend here with shoulder length hair." He explained, and Kiana blushed slash panicked. _Come on, I still don't look the same do I?_ Erina looked up for a moment, like she was focusing.

"Then she must have been really pretty!" Erina declared, and Kiana felt like she had to change the subject for a second.

"Excuse me, but how can you see?"

"Oh, I see through the Force. Right now I barely see Force auras and I can still see some physical features. As I get older my ability to see Force auras will grow so much that I won't be able to see physical features any more, just the auras." Erina explained, and Kiana nodded, pretending to look slightly confused. She understood every word the girl said, but she couldn't let them know that.

"Ah, some more of your fancy Jedi stuff right?" Kiana commented, turning back to Kavar. He nodded. "Sorry to change the subject. Continue."

"She was pretty insane sometimes, and a brilliant prankster. She was always accompanied by her three best friends, Revan, Malak, and Aurali." He explained, and Erina and Kiana stared at him.

"Wait, you mean like that Revan and Malak?" Kiana asked, knowing full well what he was going to say.

"Yes, that Revan and Malak. Before everything that happened to them, they were just normal Jedi. Anyway, all of them were brilliant pranksters, and it often got themselves into some rather…sticky situations." He trailed before he finished the sentence, and suddenly Kiana was having an odd coughing fit. They two Jedi looked at her, concern on their faces, as she pulled herself together.

"I'm okay, I swear. Continue." She allowed with a wave of her hand, leaning back in her chair. Kavar gave her an odd look, but continued.

"I had known her since she was four, and she became my Padawan. She met Aurali when she was sixteen, and they had the strangest nicknames for people." Kiana knew what he was talking about there. How could she not? She thought that she heard him curse Vash under his breath, but she couldn't be sure.

"How close were you two? I know that some Padawans and Masters are really close while others sometimes can't stand each other." Erina asked innocently, and two pairs of eyes turned to stare at her, well hidden panic underneath them both.

"We were pretty close. We had a lot in common and we spent a lot of time together. We were really good friends." He said calmly, but Kiana could hear how is voice was just a bit higher than before. She forced a smile and looked back at him.

"Well, that's good to hear. She sounds like she was really special to you." _Shit! I just screwed myself over!_

"She was. I miss her still." He trailed off softly and Kiana was relieved that he hadn't caught her slip.

"So what happened to her? Was she killed?" Erina asked, and Kavar shook his head, breaking out of whatever thoughts he was in.

"No she wasn't. When she was eighteen she went to the Mandalorian Wars under Revan's banner." He explained, and Erina's face fell while Kiana made herself look confused.

"So, what does that mean? I've been away since the wars." Kiana explained, and Erina looked at Kavar, who shook his head, and then Erina looked confused but turned back to the woman sitting beside her.

"From what I heard every Jedi that went to war with Revan fell to the dark side." Erina stated, but Kavar shook his head no.

"Tyla didn't fall; she came back to us. But we exiled her. I don't know where she is now." He explained sadly. Kiana felt slightly bad but her anger over rid it. _Yeah, exiled me and didn't even stand up for me! _She mentally yelled, but then her brain reached out and smacked her. _I'm not Tyla. I'm not Tyla I'm not Tyla I'mnotTyla I'mnotTylaI'mnotTylaI'mnotTyla!_

"Oh, I didn't know. I'm sorry." Erina said sadly. A thick silence fell over the group like a heavy blanket when Kavar suddenly brightened and smiled at his Padawan.

"It's not your fault Erina. I'm the one who didn't tell you about her earlier when I should have. Anyway, I need to talk to Kiana alone. Do you mind?" He asked, and Kiana's eyes widened slightly. _ Um, I do! _ Erina shook her head and bounced up, going back to the cockpit. Kavar turned to Kiana, stretching his legs out across the couch.

"That feels a lot better." He said, and Kiana gave him a look.

"You aren't like most Jedi I've seen in my career."

"What Jedi have you met?"

"Arrogant, stuck up bastards that care nothing for the common people." Kiana replied, thinking about Vrook. That was certainly the truth for him.

"Well, I'm sorry you've had to deal with some of them. Most of us aren't that bad. Just normal people." He answered her.

"Normal people with incredible powers and weapons that can end a war with just one of them." She countered, thinking about the Mandalorians. Okay, so it had taken more than just one Jedi to win the war. It had taken a military genius and all of her friends and half the Dantooine enclave as well as part of the Coruscant Jedi Temple and some more that she didn't know where they had come from to do it, but they had still won the war in the end.

"That's an exaggeration. Anyway, I was going to talk to you about the target." He explained, sitting up regretfully. Oh yeah, the reason why she was here. "We don't know his name, but he is supposed to extremely tall, extremely powerful with the yellow eyed appearance of a Sith." He explained, pushing a button as the Sith's image appeared.

"So basically nobody knows anything about him and we are supposed to kill him."

"Pretty much, yes."

"Well that is just amazing." Kiana stated dryly, and Kavar stood up with a laugh.

"Not as perfect as you thought we would be huh?" He asked as he held out a hand to her, and when she took it Tyla said something totally opposite of that. She ignored her former self and grabbed his hand.

A shock went up her arm when she did but she tried her best to ignore it. She was just imagining things. He helped her off the chair and she stood up as he looked her over. She couldn't help but feel self-conscious.

"Did you bring anything else with you?" He asked, motioning to her dropped pack on the ground. She shook her head as she turned around and picked it up. She turned back around and faced him with a smiled.

"Nope, I can carry all my stuff in this." She commented, and he shook his head slightly.

"All right then. Do you mind if you share a room with my Padawan? This ship doesn't have a lot of sleeping room." He admitted with a small shrug. Kiana shook her head and he led her to a decent sized room to the left side of the ship. She looked around and sheepishly turned to him.

"Umm, which bed is she staying in? I can't tell because she doesn't have any stuff to mark her area." She asked, and he shrugged again.

"She hasn't chosen yet. Go ahead and pick one." He told her, and she set her stuff down on the bed next to the door.

"I've always preferred the bed next to the door. I can get out faster in case something happens." She commented idly, and then she remembered that she had said the exact same thing to him back when she had been his Padawan. _Wow, I am so stupid sometimes._

"Master, can you come up here?" Erina called, breaking the silence that hung in the room, choking Kiana. They both stood up and were walking back to the cockpit when the ship rocked violently.

Kiana was thrown to the side and she hit the wall, falling into Kavar and on the ground. She shook her head and looked down to notice the fact that she was now on top of him. She blushed as all sorts of thoughts came to her head. The two just sat there for a couple of seconds, staring at each other.

"Umm, Kiana?" He asked, and she quickly rolled off of him, standing back up again. Wow, she hadn't blushed this much in forever. They ran back to the cockpit where Erina was desperately trying to keep the ship from getting hit from the multiple fighters that were attacking them.

"Looks like we've got problems." Kavar said, looking at the window.

"We sure do." Kiana stated. _In more ways than one._

_Anything familiar belongs to LucasArts/Bioware/Obsidian. Tyla Moore/Kiana Shale belong to Shadows of the Storm. Aurali Adrics/Leila Cross belong to Aurali Adrics. _

Exiled: Jedi Report belongs to Shadows of the Storm_  
_


	3. Chapter 3

Kiana couldn't help it. She was stuck staring at all the fighters attacking their small ship. The last time she had seen this many ships was during the war. _Stop that! That's not who you are anymore._ Kiana broke out of her thoughts when she heard Erina's call for help.

"Kiana, take the turret. Erina and I will try to get out of this mess." Kavar ordered, and Kiana nodded, running back to the turret. She couldn't help but smile when she started firing. She had missed the turret work. She was firing at multiple ships when she felt something was wrong.

They had pulled back. They shouldn't pull back this fast. In fact, she couldn't even find them on the map. It was then she looked up slightly to see a bolt coming straight for her, and it broke through the ship and hit the turret with deadly accuracy. Kiana flew back, her back hitting the wall as she slid to the ground, slowing fading out.

Kiana's eyes fluttered open, her body wrapped in a dull, throbbing pain. She moved her head slightly, trying to get up. Pain flooded her neck and head and she collapsed against whatever she was laying on. Her eyes slid shut, blocking out the bright light. She was aware of another person in the room, but other than that she was still pretty out of it.

"Kiana, you okay?" a familiar voice asked, and Kiana's eyes shot open. She made herself sit up, tightening the thin sheet around her tighter than before.

"Umm, yeah. A bit dizzy and I hurt like hell, but otherwise I'm fine." She muttered sarcastically, suddenly hyperaware of everything around her. And very aware of the fact she was completely naked under the sheet.

"Erina found you right after we were hit that time and got you in here to take care of you. She did everything; I just made sure we got out of there alive." Kavar explained. She shoved down the Tyla-like thoughts in her head and looked around.

"So, where is Erina and what happened?"

"Erina is resting. She got hit in the attack when she got you out of the turret room. Then she was pretty tired after healing your wounds." Kiana couldn't help but feel guilty. If she hadn't of been as stupid and she had realized what was going on, the poor kid wouldn't be hurt right now. "We were attacked by some of the Sith's forces. I don't know how he found us so fast, but it's got me worried." He explained, and Kiana groaned. She fell back against the bed and cursed loudly when her head smacked the wall. She really should look around more.

"Here, you need another injection of kolto anyway." He smiled at her as he grabbed a medpac from a small container by the bed. He picked up her left arm to inject it and she didn't realize it until to late.

"That's a…interesting scar. Where did you get it from?" Kavar asked, and Kiana mentally panicked. _Why can't I ever remember to cover these things up?_

"My friends were pulling a prank and it went wrong." Kiana blurted out the first thing that came to mind and she instantly regretted it. Was there anyway she could just become invisible and sink through the floor to never be seen again? He gave her a strange look, but shook his head a moment later and gave her the shot of kolto. He took a seat beside her again and she turned around to see if she could pretend to be asleep long enough for him to go away.

"It sounds like you had a pretty interesting childhood." Apparently not. She gave a mental plea for help and pushed herself back up, leaning against the back of the bed. Maybe she could just lie her way out of this.

"It wasn't that interesting. I had a crazy group of friends who got in trouble a lot." Well, there went the lying idea. It was okay. She still had a chance to get out of this.

"What were their names?"

"Nevra and Uralai." She paused for a moment, amazed at her own stupidity. "We spent a lot of time together as kids, but as we grew up we got further and further apart until we finally just faded away from each other." Kiana finished, trying to make up something that didn't sound like the truth. Well, in a way that was truth but then again it wasn't…gah! She was confusing herself!

"I'm sorry that you lost them." Kavar replied, and Kiana shook her head. When she did though she felt like something was missing. She stopped to think and shook her head again and suddenly it hit her.

"My necklace! Where did my necklace go?" she demanded, her voice quickly rising in panic. She was looking around wildly, trying to find it. She had to find it before he saw it!

"Calm down. Erina put all of your stuff in this." He placated, pointing to a small plasteel cylinder in the corner. Kiana, without thinking, leaped out of the bed and pounced on the small container. There was a moment of stunned silence as the cold of the container seeped into her veins, and she suddenly remembered the fact about her being naked.

"Out, now!" she commanded, trying to salvage what was left of her dignity. Kavar was out of the room in a flash as she dove back under the covers, dragging the container with her.

She quickly changed into her clothes (that were now clean) and put the necklace underneath the outfit. That was one thing he could never see. She sat in the room for what felt like hours, debating on what she could do.

She could go out there and try to pretend that nothing ever happened, or she could actually talk to him and apologize. That sounded like the best course of action at the moment…as long as she could stop herself from saying anything stupid.

Finally making up her mind about what to do, she stood up (with only a little pain now) and walked out the room. She glanced around quickly and saw nothing. Well, he either went to his room or to the cockpit.

She shrugged her shoulders and went to the cockpit first. Nobody was in there and she quickly made sure that the auto-pilot was on. Once that was done, she went to Erina and her own room. The small girl was still resting quietly on the bed, her wounds healing. _A healing trance._ Kiana shook the thought out of her head and continued searching.

She soon found herself right in front of the door to his room. She took a deep breath and knocked on the door lightly. There was the soft sound of movement and Kiana heard a small click. The door slip open and Kavar gave her a curious look.

"Yes?"

"Umm, can I come in?" she asked, not quite sure what to say. He nodded and moved aside so that she could slip inside. She took a seat on the small bed and he sat down on a chair that was in the room. There was a tense silence and Kiana was struggling for air.

"About what happened before…" she started, having no clue what she was doing. How was she supposed to apologize for jumping on a plasteel cylinder naked?

"Don't worry, it's forgotten. It was an accident, nothing more." Kavar said dismissively, and Kiana nodded.

"Right…so when will Erina be okay?" Kiana asked, trying to change the subject. The tense blanket of air lifted slightly and she was relieved.

"She's healing. She should be up and about by tomorrow. For now though she needs to keep sleeping." He explained and Kiana's face fell slightly. Oh great. She was going to be completely alone with him until whenever Erina woke up. Just fabulous.

"So, you said your Padawan was one of the many that went to the war. How come you have another one?" Kiana asked hesitantly. She wanted to know, but she didn't want it to sound like she knew too much.

"Erina isn't my Padawan. Her master died and there was nobody else that could take her. They didn't want to give her up since Miraluka Jedi are rare, but there were no available masters. So they gave her to me until they can find one for her." He said and Kiana nodded. Well, that made sense, kinda.

Now she was at a loss to talk about. She wanted to know more about what he would say to strangers about Tyla, but she didn't want to be so obvious about that. After all, she was already treading on thin ice just being around him and talking to him again. Well, might as well try.

"I want to know more about your other Padawan. The Jedi I've met in my time haven't exactly helped your reputation. What was she like?" Kiana asked. Well, the Jedi she had met after she had been exiled had certainly been jerks.

"No, she wasn't like that at all. Hence the reason she went to war. She always cared about everybody around her." Kavar said, looking down slightly. Suddenly an idea hit her.

"Wait, you said her name was Tyla and that she was best friends with Revan. So was she the General Tyla, the one that's name was all over the holonet about as much as Revan's was?" Kiana asked. That had been true. Every report about Revan during the war had quickly been followed up by one about 'the General Tyla' and 'Revan's mysterious agent.' Aurali had never gotten as much recognition as Tyla had but that was because nobody knew her name. She would have been the best Jedi Shadow ever.

"The one and only. Anyways, can we change the subject? Talking about her is a bit painful." He muttered and Kiana cursed slightly. She felt so narcissistic making him talk about her.

"So how did those Sith find us so soon?" she asked, her mind wandering back to the mission. She did have a job to do here, no matter how much she wanted to just jump ship sometimes.

"I don't know, but it worries me. It was like they were waiting for us. Either this Sith Lord is really smart or somebody betrayed us." Kiana let out a snort at the cruel irony of his words. _Betrayed indeed, you bastard_. He looked at her with slight confusion and she merely shook her head, waving it away.

"It's nothing. Who all knows about this mission? As far as I know it should only be you, Erina, me, Jadowyn, and the Jedi. That doesn't really help us." Kiana thought out loud, gathering her thoughts.

"Jadowyn? Who's that?" Kavar asked and Kiana held in an eye roll. _If only you remembered…_

"He was the one who told me that I would have to work with you guys on _my _bounty. He's a Republic agent that assigns the mercs and bounty hunters duties." Kiana explained quickly, exasperation in her voice. She had forgotten that Jedi sometimes had no clue what happened outside the safe halls of their enclaves. That was what had led to the Mandalorian Wars after all.

"We were never told about him." He replied suspiciously and Kiana meet his gaze eye-to-eye.

"I don't think so buddy. I've known Jad since I was fifteen. He doesn't betray people." Kiana responded instantly, not a doubt in her voice. He hadn't betrayed Tyla when he found out she was a Jedi even though he despised them. Luckily Kiana had changed enough that he couldn't recognize her for who she truly was.

"Whatever you say, Hunter. But I'm not ruling it out." Kavar replied with a wave of his hand as he laid back into his chair. Kiana stiffened at the nickname and turned to him.

"Hunter?" she choked out. The last thing she needed was him calling her a nickname again.

"Yeah, it's what we call all bounty hunters. Does it bother you?" he asked politely and Kiana nodded her head.

"It's demeaning. I have a name. Use it." She demanded, a slightly joking tone in her voice. She couldn't help it.

"Would you rather I shortened your name?"

"NO!" At his expression, Kiana calmed down slightly and leaned against the wall. "I hate it when people do that. Always have, always will. Only my name will suffice." She declared, her voice even.

"So it's Kiana or another nickname that doesn't include your name being shortened or Hunter. Got it." He answered with a laugh and Kiana sighed in frustration.

"You are impossibly infuriating, do you know that?" Kiana shot back at him and he nodded.

"It's a gift. I get on people's nerves often. I get people mad at me when I don't even know what I did sometimes. Other times, I know I deserve it. But most of the time it ends up with someone being insanely mad at me. Enough to push me off the roof of a building." He replied seriously. Ouch, that was low. Okay, so he didn't know that he was referring to _her_ actions all those years before, but still. That stung. She stood up sharply and turned around to the door. Right before she stepped through though, she paused to give him one last warning.

"No nicknames. I mean it." The white haired huntress threatened as she left his room and walked back to the room she would be resting in for the remainder of this journey. She paused when she saw Erina's young form sleeping soundly on her bed. Kiana felt a wave of compassion for the Miraluka as she sat beside her.

She remembered what it was like to be a young Padawan thrown into the craziness of real life when you had lived your entire life in the shelter of the enclave. Especially if the rumors she heard about the Jedi were true now. She spied the Padawan's supplies in the corner of the room and Kiana stood up silently.

She pulled the equipment to her and she dug around until she felt the cold hilt of a lightsaber. She looked around for another one but didn't see or feel one. _So there are people who don't dual wield out there!_ Kiana laughed lightly to herself before she pulled the weapon out.

She inspected the familiar yet unfamiliar tool in her hands. Overall it was very well made and it was just as original as every other lightsaber. Nobody's was the same. Even the two she had once had hadn't been twins. With another glance at Erina, to make sure she was still resting, Kiana activated the weapon.

Intense green light shot out of it and Kiana smiled slightly. What was with him and his non-Guardian Padawans? She gently put the lightsaber back in the bag and pushed it back over to the corner it had been in previously. She stood up to leave when a hand reached out and grabbed her wrist.

"Kiana?" a tiny voice asked, still raspy from sleep. Kiana turned around and sat back down next to the still tired girl. She gently removed the Padawan's hand from her wrist and put it next to her side. Kiana brushed her own hand against Erina's cheek to make sure she was doing well.

"I'm right here. Anything you need?" she asked quietly. Erina shifted slight and Kiana had to withhold a small gasp at the deadly burn marks that still covered part of her body. How bad had the attack been? How bad had she looked since she had been in the middle of the blast? Erina must have used up most of her energy healing.

"I'm glad you're here Kiana." The girl broke off coughing slightly and the exile winced at the sound. "It's nice to have a girl around to talk to." Erina smiled softly and Kiana returned it, albeit hers was a bit sadder.

"Trust me, I know. I'll be here for you Erina." Kiana whispered, and Erina looked up at her with care.

"Thank you. But, I'm worried about you. Your aura, it's broken and fragmented. There's a hole that cuts you deeply. What happened to you?" Erina asked gently and Kiana could do nothing but stare at her in shock. Could she tell that she had once been connected to the Force and it had been brutally ripped away from her?

"I've…I've been hurt Erina. I've been hurt and it resonates within me still, like an echo." Kiana replied softly, feeling a sudden need to be entirely truthful with the child. Why? She didn't know.

"Tell me what happened." Erina demanded quietly and this time Kiana sensed the mental push. She forced her walls up quickly and scrambled away from her.

"I can't believe you! You tried to make me tell you!" Kiana yelped with shock and anger. And this was one reason she would never forgive the Jedi. They would so easily you the Force to manipulate the ones that were trying to help them. Erina scrambled up so that she was sitting up in the bed.

"I didn't mean to offend you! You're just so hurt and sad that I wanted to know why so I could help you!" Erina spoke quickly, defending her actions. Kiana's anger softened slightly. She probably would have done the same thing if it had been one of her friends. She took a calming breath and made her way back over to where the slightly frantic girl was.

"Calm down Erina and go back to sleep. I forgive you." Kiana ordered lightly as she pushed the girl back down. The Jedi was practically asleep before her head hit the pillow, but Kiana's keen senses did pick up the faint "thank you" the girl muttered. Kiana sighed and sat with the girl for about five more minutes before she pushed herself up and walked out of the room.

She made her way back to the main hold and collapsed in one of the mildly comfortable chairs. She dropped her head into her hands with a sigh. She was in way over her head and she knew it. She could only hope that this job would be over soon. Kiana looked up and cursed as she remembered that Jadowyn had wanted her to report in to him.

She made the connection to his private line to skip the process of going through the official line and she waited impatiently for it to go through. When Jadowyn's image appeared Kiana had her arms crossed over her chest and her right foot was tapping impatiently.

"Did you know that you absolutely gorgeous when your angry?" Jadowyn asked and Kiana rolled her eyes at his holo.

"Flattery won't work with me right now. I am not a happy hunter!" Kiana exclaimed angrily, throwing her arms up in the air with exasperation. Jadowyn sighed and got ready for the long haul. Kiana's rants were never fun and they were both well aware of that fact.

"What's going on babe?" he asked and Kiana narrowed her eyes at him.

"How many times have I told you that I hate nicknames?"

"A billion, and you know that I'm still going to call you them. So just tell me what the big issue is." Kiana growled angrily and wished that he was standing in front of her so she could wring his neck.

"The big issue? The big issue? You put me on a ship of Jedi and send me after some kick-ass Sith Lord and then within a few moments of us leaving we get attacked by some Sith and you're asking me WHAT THE BIG ISSUE IS?" Kiana exclaimed angrily. Jadowyn's eyes widened and he leaned forward in his chair even though it would do no good.

"Are you okay? What happened? How did they find you so fast?" Jadowyn quick-fired and Kiana rubbed the bridge of her nose, seeking the comfort of her necklace although she knew she couldn't reach for it here.

"I suffered some injuries in the initial blast but I'm okay now. Jedi are good for something after all. But the Padawan got hurt badly and she's still recovering. How the hell were we found so fast though? I've got one suspicious Jedi already that thinks that maybe you betrayed us." Kiana explained slowly, leveling her voice with steady breaths. Jadowyn gave her a look of hurt shock.

"You would suspect me of doing such a thing? Babe, I would never betray you in a thousand years." Jadowyn said solemnly and Kiana sighed.

"I know that, but it still doesn't explain how we were found so fast. I can usually keep my tracks covered better than that." Kiana said and she looked up in shock when the image fizzled away. Her hands flew to the swords at her hips and she looked around, trying to find the source of disruption. She relaxed only slightly when she saw Kavar leaning in the door frame.

"What the hell was that for?" she demanded, her hands still on the hilt of her swords. She was extremely pissed right now and she wasn't above trying to attack him with her weapons. Force knows he deserved it. He looked at her calmly before his eyes flickered over to where Jadowyn's image had been moments before and back to the angry huntress.

"I thought office romances always ended badly." He stated simply and Kiana could have choked him. He did _not_ just say that to her!

"Like you wouldn't know." She muttered venomously.

"Excuse me?" he asked and Kiana's glare shifted up to him.

"You heard what I said. You can't tell me that you Jedi aren't doing something behind the scenes." She shot back coldly. He met her glare with just as much spite.

"We aren't, and that's final. Don't bring it up again." He ordered, his voice a low growl. He turned to leave the room when Kiana's mouth decided to not be connected to her brain.

"I'm sure. That must be why you miss your fallen Padawan so much!" She called out and then mentally cursed. Why had she just brought herself into this? He froze and turned around to face her slowly. "That must be it. Just use 'em and lose 'em. Have a quick one night stand and then forget about them. That must be what your code _really_ means when it talks about no emotion." Kiana spit, her entire body shaking with anger. She was acting dumb and she was livid and she knew she was bound to say something stupid, but Kiana couldn't stop herself. All of her emotions had built up to long without a release.

"This conversation is over, Kiana. Drop it." Kavar commanded, obviously trying to keep what was left of his Jedi calm. Kiana couldn't do it though. There was no way she was just going to calm down.

"Can't stand the heat when the truth about your dirty little actions when it's brought to light?" Yes, she was angry. She was extremely angry and she had wanted to kill him for so long. Since the day of her exile. Now that she finally had the chance to release all her anger on him, Kiana was not about to let that slip away. This was probably the only time she would ever see him again and she wanted to get everything out in the open now. Her plan worked as he turned on her. She held up an arm to push him away from her but he caught her wrist angrily.

"I could say the same thing about. How do I know that you don't offer yourself up to anybody willing to pay?" he countered and Kiana's eyes narrowed.

"You have no clue where my loyalties lie." Kiana hissed lowly. He was close enough to her that there was no reason for her to speak any louder, and the last thing she wanted was for Erina to walk in here. The kid wasn't involved in this. This was their fight and their fight alone.

"No I don't because I know you have none." He snarled and the words sent a shudder down her spine. He threw her hand down and stalked out of the room. Kiana was left to stare at where he had been moments before. After a few moments of shock the pain in her shoulder hit her hard.

Kiana groaned in pain as she began to tenderly massage it. Bastard had probably moved it out of place. She hissed in pain as she moved back to her own room, collapsing on the bed. She didn't notice anything else until Erina laid a hand on her uninjured shoulder. Kiana jumped slightly and looked at the Padawan.

"How long have you been awake?" Kiana whispered. Erina just shook her head at her.

"Long enough. Here, let me look at that shoulder." The young Jedi reached out but Kiana shifted backwards, not allowing the Miraluka to touch her.

"I don't think so kid. You've wasted enough energy healing me already." Kiana stated matter-of-factly. Erina grabbed her other shoulder and pulled her to her, keeping the slightly thrashing bounty hunter under control. Erina laid a hand on Kiana's shoulder and healed it rather quickly. Kiana sighed contently at the lessened pain despite the fact she hadn't wanted it. Erina pulled away from the exile and sat on her own bed.

"I'm feeling much better now, by the way. Almost all of my wounds are healed. Yours however obviously have not." Erina stated and Kiana knew she wasn't talking about anything physical.

"I just have issues with Jedi and their code. No offense. And he really pisses me off." Kiana sulked slightly as she laid down softly on the bed. Today had been one hell of day. Erina nodded and reached across her own bed so that her hand was resting on Kiana's forehead.

"I'm sure he does…Tyla." Kiana froze at the words, but her body betrayed her as Erina forced her mind into the darkness of her own dreams.

_Anything familiar belongs to LucasArts/Bioware/Obsidian. Tyla Moore/Kiana Shale belongs to Shadows of the Storm. Aurali Adrics/Leila Cross belong to Aurali Adrics._

Exiled © Shadows of the Storm


	4. Chapter 4

Kiana's bright blue eyes opened slowly, expecting to find herself in the dingy apartment she had been in for the past couple of days. Needless to say she was surprised when she saw the inside of a starship. She rubbed her head, wondering if she had gotten drunk last night. Her head didn't hurt. She turned around and saw a small girl sleeping in the bed besides her. Suddenly all of her memories hit her.

Jadowyn's assignment, Erina, Kavar, turret, attacking the cylinder, argument, Erina calling her Tyla. "Frack, I wish I _had_ gotten drunk last night." Kiana muttered under her breath as she stood up. She slipped into the fresher for a much needed shower that unfortunately didn't last long. She opened the door and smiled when she saw that the Miraluka was still asleep. She was going to have a talk with Erina later, but she wanted to do that when she wasn't dripping wet.

She dried off quickly and dressed in her usual attire. She only had her hunting clothes with her after all. She threw her hair up into a long ponytail, allowing her bangs to frame her face. Erina was still snoring lightly. Kriff, that girl could sleep. Kiana ghosted out of the room quietly and softly stepped out into the ship.

She sighed, trying to decide what to do. She didn't want to stay in her room because Erina was still sleeping, and she didn't want to wake the young Padawan up because she didn't want to have to discuss what she had said last night. At the same time though she wanted to stay as far away from Kavar as possible. She had no place to go! Kiana wanted off this ship so badly it wasn't even funny. She wouldn't care if she was on Dantooine! She just wanted to get away from this nonsense!

With no other choice, Kiana slowly made her way to the cockpit. She wanted to see where they were headed. She had been to…distracted before to check. She was insanely relived when she spotted nobody else in the room. The exile sat down in the comfortable pilots chair and looked at the map that was laid out in front of her.

"Tashari? What the hell is that?" Kiana exclaimed as she saw the planet that they were currently headed for. It seemed slightly familiar, but she couldn't tell from where.

"A planet." A voice stated coldly behind her and she jumped. She spun the chair around to see Kavar leaning against the door frame again. Her eyes narrowed at him in annoyance.

"I knew that. I meant that I've never heard of it before." Kiana retorted hotly. She didn't appreciate being treated like a clueless Pada…kid again. He removed himself from the door and sat in the co-pilots seat.

"Most people haven't. The two sects there were at war for a very long time before I went and put an end to it. It took one, massive, bloody battle to do it, but the war ended. I have a couple of contacts there that might have some information we need." He explained calmly and suddenly the memory snapped back to Kiana.

"_Get your lazy butt up Ty! This is important!" Kavar demanded, shaking the still-sleepy Padawan. She batted at his hand and curled up into an even tighter ball than she had been before._

"_Go away." She muttered, wishing that he would leave her alone. Kavar huffed in annoyance before he smirked at her. He stopped bugging her for a couple of seconds and she sighed contently as she tried to go back to sleep._

_That however failed miserably when he threw a large bucket of ice-cold water on her. Tyla shrieked and got herself tangled in the sheets as she toppled off of the bed and onto the cold floor. It seeped into her wet skin easily and she was up in a nano-second._

"_What the frack was that for?" she demanded angrily, her teeth chattering. Kavar laughed at the freezing Padawan. This only increased her ire as her previous glare went up a notch to death glare. _

"_You wouldn't get up and this is really important. It seemed like the best way at the moment." He explained and Tyla glared even more as she brushed past him to find a towel._

"_You keep thinking of 'the best way' and you're going to lose a very necessary piece or two." Tyla growled as she dried off quickly. "Now what was so damn important?" _

"_We're heading to the planet Tashari." He continued at his Padawan's clueless look. "The two sects there have been fighting for a very long time. They want us to go put a stop to it." He explained quickly and Tyla sighed as she finished toweling off._

"_Will there be violence?" she asked hopefully and he rolled his eyes at her._

"_Hopefully not."_

"_I wanted some violence." Tyla pouted as she went to go change out of her still damp clothes._

"_And how you aren't a true Guardian or a Sith never ceases to amaze me." He muttered to himself as the door shut. _

"_Because I'm too amazing to be either!" she called out and he shook his head at her._

Kiana blinked in slight surprise. Why hadn't she remembered that?

"Is that a thought process I see? And here I was thinking that you weren't capable of such a feat." He muttered and Kiana glared at the Jedi Master.

"Some are more capable than other, valashari." Kiana cursed him, the word slipping out.

"Call me whatever you want. I don't care." He commented icily as he stared out into hyper space.

"Misti imoshia nomi." Kiana growled under her breath. The literal translation was 'I hate you.'

"Misti xizi nahas." He spit in return and Kiana jumped up, startled. He gave her a look of contempt before he returned to his gazing out the window.

"Don't think you're the only one who knows ancient civilization. All Jedi study the past." He said simply before the room fell into heated silence.

"Gashin wymin." Kiana threw out, wondering how well he knew the language. It was true anyway. He was an arrogant prick.

"Areien omik." Trashy whore? Trashy whore?

"You know, I would love to see things like that from your point of view, but I can't seem to get my head that far up my ass!" she hissed in reply. There was a moment of silence before she spoke again.

"Is this your revenge for what I said last night?" Kiana sighed. Once more there was silence. Kiana growled lowly in frustration. She knew that is they didn't start working together soon the mission would fail.

"Look, I think we can safely say that we both carried that argument way too far. I was really angry and I said things I shouldn't have." Kiana breathed. Silence hung in the air until he turned to look at her.

"Yes you did." Kiana was about to go on a rant so bad that it would have made Vrook proud when Kavar continued. "But so did I. So is this an apology?" He asked the huntress.

"It's a peace treaty." She countered. It wasn't an apology, but it was enough to get them talking again.

"I can accept that for now." He smiled faintly at her before he motioned to where Erina still was.

"Can you go check on her? She has a tendency to sleep late." He explained. Kiana gave a mock salute and marched out of the room. She wondered back to her room only to see the perceptive Padawan sitting up in bed.

"Hello…_Kiana._" She greeted, stressing the name. The exiled sighed as she remembered the girl's words earlier. She sat herself on the bed and looked over at the Miraluka.

"I suppose you have questions. Go ahead and ask them." Kiana allowed with a small bow of her head.

"Why do you hide who you are?" Erina simply asked. Kiana could have laughed at the innocence of the question. It was apparent that, despite the girl's annoying perceptiveness, she had yet to experience the darker side of the Order.

"Erina, you wouldn't understand and I won't explain. I have my reasons, and he is one of them. I'm trusting you with this knowledge. Do not betray me." The unspoken threat hung in the air for a small while but Erina took it in stride.

"Of course Kiana." She nodded and the huntress expelled a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

"If you don't mind, I need to change." Erina said sheepishly, the entire atmosphere in the room changing. Kiana stood up with a smile, glad that things were changing.

"Sure. Just come out once you're done. You seem to always be locked away in this room." Kiana scolded jokingly as she left the room. She walked back to the cockpit to see that Kavar had taken the pilot's seat.

"You stole my chair." She exclaimed childishly, mock hurt crossing her face. He ignored her and she sat beside him in a miniature huff. "How much longer until we get to Tashari?" Kiana questioned, propping her feet up. The ship jerked out of hyperspace and she almost tumbled out of her chair.

"Now." Kavar answered as Kiana righted herself. She rolled her eyes at him as Erina walked in. Kiana spun around to take in the girl's appearance. She was still wearing the typical Padawan robes but where a veil had covered her eyes before, a tight white bandage wrapped around. It must have been in case they went into battle. Dark red hair curled around itself even though it was tied back.

"Looking good." Kiana stated and Erina thanked her softly. The exile continued to be amazed by this girl. Sometimes she was so hyper and childish while at some moments she was very adult and wise beyond her years. It truly was amazing.

Kavar took the ship in and a few minutes later they landed gently. Kiana stood up and turned to leave when he caught her wrist. He pulled her back to him and she snapped her wrist away from him.

"Hold up. Erina, I need you to go to the hotel in the south square and ask fro Lurania. She'll give you what I need." Kavar commanded and Kiana thought for a moment. Hotel in the south square…she had been there before. Back when she was a Padawan. That was the first-

"Of course!" she exclaimed, obviously happy to be getting a chance to get off this ship. Just like Kiana was.

"What about me?" the blonde exile questioned with excitement.

"With me." Kavar stated and Kiana frowned. Why didn't she get to do something cool or exciting? When she voiced her question Kavar only laughed.

"This place is still violent. Nobody hurts me because of who I am and by extension, Erina." He explained, ignoring Kiana's comment about his ego and he continued. "If you go by yourself, you're liable to get attacked. I know you can take care of yourself but I would rather not take the chance at all." Kavar finished. Kiana sighed when she realized he was right. She was going to have to go with him.

"Fine. I still think I would have been fine on my own." Kiana sulked. The trio, once armed, left the ship. The dock was like any other, down to the demanding of the outrageous number of credits they wanted. The trio handed over the money and left the dock. Kiana was shocked at what she saw.

The place was still worse than Nar Shaddaa! Brawls were breaking out in the streets, hookers watched from the sideline and they offered themselves up to the winner, and the exile was positive that she had never smelt anything worse in her life.

"What happened to this place?" Kiana exclaimed, dodging a flying bottle that had once held juma juice.

"I said I stopped the fighting between the two sects. I never said the place got any better." Kavar replied dryly, dragging Kiana away. Erina went the opposite direction and the bounty hunter shot her a concerned look.

"I'm worried about Erina, Kavar." She stated as the Padawan disappeared into the never-ending crowd of people.

"I know that, but they won't hurt her. And even if they try, Erina can take care of herself. She'll be fine." He responded and Kiana sighed. She couldn't go after the kid now anyway.

As they walked through the streets of what seemed to be the capital it only got worse and worse. The sky even darkened the deeper they went into the blackened heart of the city. They finally stopped in front of a black building. It was old and battered, but it seemed to be extremely popular.

"Word of warning; stick close to me. This place is vicious and nobody will think a thing if somebody takes a swipe at you. The guys here are very…"

"Touchy-feely?"

"That's a nice way of putting it." Kavar muttered in reply, his arm slipping around her waist. Kiana glared at him but didn't push him away.

"Taski bimicid jrealin vimda ziqan." She warned. He smiled sheepishly at her.

"Sorry, it wasn't meant like that. You practically have to have a leash on the people you bring in here if you don't want them disappearing." Kavar told her and Kiana had to stifle a laugh as an image of her old Padawan braid popped up. Now that thing was a leash, and it hurt like hell.

Kavar pushed the door open and Kiana was greeted by the sight of what looked like the mixture of a casino, a bar, and a strip club. And it was filled with drunks. The scent of alcohol filled the room and the huntress was almost sure she could smell the desperation of these people. It became apparent that everybody in here was both poor and needed money, or they were in debt and they needed money, or that they had wasted what little money that had on alcohol and now they were stuck here. It really was sad.

"And who exactly would you be looking for in a place like this?" Kiana asked, eyeing the patrons of the joint warily.

"The guy who owns the place." Kavar muttered. Without realizing it, Kiana snuggled closer to him as they ventured through the place. Not even she could fend off all these people if it came down to it. She was going to need him in here as much as she hated to admit it.

"Hey lady!" someone called out and Kiana turned around. She cursed when a man who looked pretty tipsy approached her. "How much for a show?" he asked suggestively, staggering slightly and almost falling.

"I am not for sale!" the exile hissed angrily. She went to turn away from him and continue on but the drunk man reached out and caught her wrist. She tried to pull away from him but he was much stronger than he looked. It was at moments like these that Kiana wanted the Force back.

"C'mon lady. I'm sure we can reach an agreement of mutual benefit." He protested with a raise of his eyebrows. Kiana was about to try to pull away again when the man was suddenly thrown back into one of the pazaak tables by an invisible force. Well, more like Force.

The man stood up angrily although he was stumbling. He had a large cut across his forehead and blood was seeping down his face and into his eye. He looked like he was about to charge when one of the guys that had been playing at the table he had crashed into lifted him into the air by his shirt. The bloody man spit at the player and needless to say another brawl was soon started.

"Um, I think we should get out of here." Kavar whispered and Kiana eagerly agreed. They scurried away from the area filled with the massive brawl unharmed and unchallenged. The huntress sighed in relief as they got into a slightly calmer area.

"So what was that about?" Kiana asked, turning to look up at her escort. Stupid tall Jedi. He stayed silent as they stopped in front of a door. A _very large_ door. Said door was made of the same durasteel that made the outer hull of space vessels.

"Look, this is where he is. Zadane is used to getting anything he wants. Spice, women, slaves, money. He won't take to anyone who refuses him what he wants kindly." Kavar explained in hushed tones and Kiana shot him a look.

"So I'm just supposed to give myself up if he wants me?" Kiana exclaimed indignantly. Kavar immediately shook his head an urgent no.

"No, of course not! That was just a simple warning that a fight could break out here fairly easily." He clarified and Kiana nodded. He was right. There was a very real and very deadly possibility that all hell could be unleashed here.

With her hands on her swords, the two opened the massive door and went inside. Four bodyguards were standing on the other side of the door. They jumped slightly when the door opened but they relaxed only slightly when they saw who it was. They waved them in and the tiny black hall opened up into a large room.

The large room was almost entirely black but there was enough light to see the other guards lining the walls. Kiana's sense picked up on the movement in the shadows and she knew that they were watching her every move. She may not have the Force anymore but she had become much more alert to her surroundings with just her normal senses.

A man was chatting with one of his guards and he turned when the Twi'lek pointed to the door. He wasn't extremely tall, but he wasn't short either. Kiana could see that he was well built and could be a big threat in battle. His shaggy brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail and he looked at them with calculating dark eyes.

"Look what the kath hound dragged in." the man Kiana recognized to be Zadane drawled. Kiana felt herself freeze as all of her memories of Tashari came flooding back. They had come here when she was seventeen to stop the fighting between the two sects. The night before the negotiations was the first night she had slept with Kavar. There had been a battle the next day and she had almost lost him. Before they could leave they were shot down. They had been captured and tortured before they could escape. She had gotten engaged to him that night. There had been another giant, massive battle that had completely rocked the planet before they could get back to Dantooine. How could she have forgotten?

Kavar glanced at her and Kiana shook her head. She couldn't think about this right now. She had other things to focus on. Mainly, Zadane. He approached them slowly and the exile became slightly frustrated when she noticed that she was being completely ignored by the crime lord.

"Always a pleasure, Zadane." Kavar replied sarcastically. Zadane shook his head at the Jedi and finally turned around to face the bounty hunter. He looked over her slowly, enjoying himself immensely. It made Kiana want to murder him slowly and take a very long shower. Disgusting schutta. If her memory was correct, he had done the same thing when she had come here the first time.

"You've got the best of look with girls. First it was that gorgeous blonde girl all those years back and now it's her. What's your great secret to getting all the beautiful blondes?" Zadane asked and Kiana took it as a taunt. The huntress gripped her swords even tighter than before. It was a good thing that valashari hadn't dared to even look at Erina. If he did…

"And you know I did nothing with them." _Liar. _"Now you know why I'm here. Tell me." Kavar growled. Zadane merely waved a hand at him dismissively.

"You know that I won't tell-" he was cut off when a blue lightsaber appeared at his throat. The bodyguards jerked forward but the crime lord quickly waved them down nervously.

"C'mon Jedi, you won't kill me." Zadane taunted, but there was fear in his voice. Kiana smirked as the lightsaber inched closer.

"The only reason you've been alive this long is because you've got connections to the underground and you're a source of information. The second that information dries up and stops coming, I will no longer have a use for you. Do not test me Zadane." Kavar countered viciously and the crime lord gulped.

"Fine, I'll tell you what you want. Just put the weapon away." Zadane caved and the glowing light left his neck. Zadane massaged his neck gently as he backed away slightly.

"I hope you know that I'm going to get murdered for telling you this. The last I heard your Sith was on Kaisanein. That's all I know." The crime lord complained. The lightsaber reactivated and his eyes widened. "That's all! I swear!"

Kavar seemed to accept this answer as he put the deactivated lightsaber back on his belt. "Thank you very much. Pleasure doing business with you." He waved good-bye as his other arm rested over Kiana's shoulders and they left. Once the massive door that lead to the entire club slammed shut behind them and they were back in the city itself did Kiana spin around to face him.

"That was nice. I thought that you good guys didn't do the whole threatening thing." Kiana stated and Kavar just gave her a look along with a shrug.

"I learned a long time ago that you do what you have to, damn the consequences." He replied. Kiana sighed. Suddenly there was a stinging in her right leg and she looked down to see a small dart sticking out her leg. She looked around, trying to find whoever had shot her but she couldn't tell. Her leg gave out and she collapsed.

Kavar caught her before she hit the ground and she blinked several times. "Ow, this is mildly painful." She stated. Without warning Kavar pulled the dart out of her leg and she cursed loudly.

"_Ow_! Warning much?" she demanded but he merely ignored her. Kavar laid a hand over her exposed leg and wrapped it in healing energy. The exile relaxed and laid back slightly. That felt a lot better.

"I'm no healer, but that should make it better. We should probably get Erina to check on it though when we get back. She's better at that than I am." Kavar admitted and Kiana held out a hand. He pulled her up and she stumbled slightly. She ended up falling into him and she couldn't pull away.

"No. You can't walk so don't even think about attempting to. I told you something was going to happen." Kavar insisted and Kiana growled slightly.

"Fine, fine. You win. You try anything though and you're dead." Kiana threatened even though she was in no state to do anything. "Where is the nearest cantina?" she asked, looking around. Kavar rolled his eyes at her, but he helped her walk out of the district. After a little bit of time she was feeling better and she pulled away, able to walk on her own. They eventually walked inside of what seemed to be a decent cantina. Shock of shocks.

"Don't get to drunk. I really don't want to have the experience of dealing with you drunk." Kavar warned and Kiana snorted. _You so sure_ _about that?_

"Trust me, I don't plan on it. I don't get drunk that easily." Anymore. Before the war she had gotten drunk pretty easily. After the war though she could handle alcohol quite well. The huntress took a sat at the bar, ordering several of the best drink they had to make you forget. The bartender didn't even spare her a second glance as he filled her order.

"Be careful Kiana." Kavar warned again. She just winked at him and downed her first drink, the others soon following.

And that was the last thing she remembered.

_Anything familiar belongs to LucasArts/Bioware/Obsidian. Tyla Moore/Kiana Shale belongs to Shadows of the Storm. Aurali Adrics/Leila Cross belong to Aurali Adrics._

Exiled © Shadows of the Storm


	5. Chapter 5

Why the frack was it so cold?

Kiana jerked her head to the side and instantly regretted it. Her head was pounding with paralyzing pain and she had to blink several times to clear her fuzzy vision. She shivered again and looked down. The huntress was not very happy when she saw that she was only 'covered' by a skimpy outfit. It was something like a dancer's outfit without as much modesty. She tried to sit up and she was instantly on her back again.

"Ow, that's a hangover." Kiana muttered painfully as she rubbed her temple. What the frack happened at that cantina? She struggled up and got dressed as fast as her hung-over self could without killing herself. Thank the Force that her hangovers never lasted that long.

Kiana left the room and stumbled to the main hold. Nobody was in there so she tried the cockpit next. There she had some luck. Kavar was sitting in the pilot's chair and Erina was sitting next to him.

"What the hell happened last night?" Kiana exclaimed, using the door frame for support. Both Kavar and Erina turned to look at her and she suddenly realized what she said. "Oh you know what I mean!" she shouted impatiently even though it made her head hurt worse. She was not in the mood right now!

"Erina, do you mind?" Kavar asked and she smiled in reply.

"Not at all. We need more medpacs anyway." Erina said as she walked out. Kiana thankfully took over the abandoned seat quickly and prayed for the throbbing in her head to stop soon.

"You wanna know what happened after all those drinks, huh?" Kavar asked.

"Yes! Wait, no. Um…just go ahead and tell me before I change my mind again." Kiana sighed as she leaned back in the chair. It was so comfy right now that she could fall asleep right there.

"Well, you had a whole bunch of those drinks and then you decided that every guy in the bar was better than the last one. Since that was good enough reason for you, you decided to try to get in bed with all of them. That didn't happen in case you're wondering. Deciding that wasn't enough, you took the place of one of the cantina dancers, outfit and all. And then…" he trailed off and Kiana was instantly worried. She hadn't told him who she was, had she?

"And then what?" Kiana asked nervously. Please say anything besides that she told him the truth! She would rather him say that she had tap danced on eggs that that!

"And then nothing. You passed out and I took you back to the ship." Kavar replied and even slightly hung-over she knew that was lie.

"Tell me what happened!" Kiana demanded with slight panic. Why was he avoiding the question? She should have known better! She knew what she was like drunk! Why the frack did she get drunk? How could she have been so fracking stupid like that?

"Why is it so important?" Kavar asked and Kiana threw her hands into the air.

"Because I have a tendency to do incredibly stupid things very fast when I'm drunk! I've gotten in trouble countless times because of it!" Kiana yelled so fast that the words started to blur together. She was in full out panic mode now. She was only making it worse and she knew that. But she couldn't stand not knowing what she had done. There was so much that could cause her complete downfall. Everything she had created for herself since her exile those years back could go completely out the viewport.

"Kiana, calm down and shut up. I'll explain." Kavar ordered but this only made the huntress freak out more.

"Calm down and shut up? I am not going to calm down and mmph!" Her rant was cut off when he kissed her. Without realizing what she was doing she kissed him back, enjoying the feeling of being with him again. It was only a few seconds later when one of them pulled away. Her eyes opened slightly (huh, when had that happened?) and there a moment of silence.

"I did that?" she squeaked. Kavar nodded and Kiana wanted to find a hole and die in it. She would have preferred him saying that she had tap danced on eggs than her doing that. She was thrilled her secret was still a secret of course, but her kissing him was almost as bad. He had seen their scar, heard about her only slightly altered history, and now she had kissed him…twice. If he didn't know that she was Tyla by now he was more clueless than she was.

"Pretty much." He replied, bringing Kiana out of her thoughts although he was barely looking at her. She raised an eyebrow at him and he sighed, looking at her fully. "Well, yours was a bit more forceful than that." Kavar explained and this only made it that much worse for Kiana. This was bad, oh so very bad.

"Well now that you've seen me drunk you'll believe me when I blame my actions on that. Trust me; there is no interest here at all." Kiana replied, trying to convince herself more than him. She may not hate him anymore, but there was no way she was ever going to allow herself to fall in love with anyone ever again. It just hurt too much.

"I knew that. I didn't put any thought into it." He dismissed and it stung her slightly. Fine, be like that.

"I just wish I could remember what all happened." Kiana complained as she laid back in the chair. All she wanted to know was how bad it had been.

"So you don't remember anything about what happened? At all?" Kavar asked after he turned to look at the lounging huntress. She let her head roll to the said and she looked at him suspiciously.

"Why? You didn't try anything did?" Kiana asked and he immediately shook his head or in the negative.

"Of course not! I wouldn't ever! I was just curious." He replied hastily, slowing down with his final words. Kiana just shrugged and rubbed her head. The once blinding pain of death and doom had been reduced to nothing more than a dull throb now.

"Not a damn thing. The only thing I remember is alcohol. Lots and lots of alcohol." Kiana admitted, searching her brain for anything that was even close to a memory. There was absolutely nothing to find though. The huntress growled in utter frustration until she felt something that was most assuredly not hangover residue pushing at her brain. She shoved Kavar out of her brain my slamming down several mental walls and turned to glare at him.

"Mind rape much?" Kiana growled and she looked slightly ashamed. If it was because he had tried to get into her head or because he had been caught trying to, she didn't know and she wasn't sure if she wanted to.

"I'm sorry. It's just that I'm still trying to figure you out. I know you're first name, a little about your childhood and that you're a Republic bounty hunter." Kavar replied and Kiana looked at him with poorly disguised shock.

"You haven't exactly been sharing your life history either, buddy." The exile shot back with annoyance.

"Would it make you feel better if I shared my life history with you?" Kavar asked with a tilt of his head. She recognized his sarcasm.

"No." Kiana sighed. "Fine, here goes. The name is Kiana Shale. I became a bounty hunter seven years ago. The Republic hired me two years ago to deal with the more dangerous bounties because I'm fast and deadly." The fabricated story slipped out so easily that it was pathetic.

"And?"

"And what?"

"Anything else?" Kavar prompted and Kiana was instantly annoyed even more than she had been before.

"Why don't you just look in my head if you want to bring all my secrets kicking and screaming into the spotlight? You didn't seem to mind earlier." Kiana spat angrily. Seriously? She had already gave him some information even though she obviously hated talking about her past and he wanted more? Did he expect to get her entire fracking life story in one day?

"I wouldn't do that unless you wanted me to." He replied softly and Kiana rolled her eyes at the blatant lie.

"You mean like you just did?" she asked icily.

"I just wanted to know if I could unlock your memory of the cantina but I should have asked first." Kavar admitted and Kiana nodded after she got over a small moment of shock. A Jedi on the council admitting they were wrong. Who would have thought it could be possible?

"Correct you are. Do not invade my mind again unless I give you permission and sign the contract in my own fracking blood." She sighed, not sure why she was doing this. "Which I'm doing now. Try to get me my memory back." Kiana allowed, ignoring Kavar's shocked look. He shook his head slightly and looked back at her.

"Contract signed in blood and all?" he asked and Kiana smacked his arm.

"Shut up. Stupid Jedi with their sarcasm." Kiana muttered and Kavar grew somber again.

"Are you sure about this? Most people hate the feeling of having another person in their head." He warned seriously and she could have snorted. _I used to have four, you being one of them. Trust me, I will be perfectly okay._

"Trust me, I'll be okay. I'll just make sure you don't try to see something else." Kiana reassured. She knew this was a huge risk. He had been in her head almost constantly after the incident and there was no guarantee that she could keep her more important memories safely locked away.

He gave her a moment and she nodded shakily. She still doubted her decision when she felt the familiar feeling of having someone that wasn't herself in her head. She reacted instantly by putting up several walls. Kiana had to force herself to lower them although it was seriously draining her energy by keeping those down and reinforcing the ones around her other memories. It seemed to be an eternal struggle until the slight pressure finally left. Kiana took a few calming breaths and waited for a couple of moments before she finally spoke again.

"Anything?" she asked with half hope and half dread. Kavar shook his head and she felt herself deflate. Why couldn't she remember what happened? She never forgot anything after being drunk!

"There was nothing. I wish I could help." He answered her and Kiana leaned back. She knew that something was wrong with this situation, but there was nothing she could do right now. She would have to figure it out later.

"At least you tried. If I can't remember, I can't remember. Not your fault." She sighed. Kavar suddenly stood up and brushed out of the room, passing Erina on the way. The confused Padawan looked at the confused bounty hunter who both looked out the door, still looking confused.

"Did I say something wrong?" Kiana asked Erina and she shrugged in reply.

"I don't think so, but then again I have no idea what to think these days anymore." Erina admitted. Kiana gave her a confused look and the Padawan sighed as she sat down in the seat that Kavar had left.

"I've never seen him like this before Kiana. He's usually very calm, cool, and collected but when he is around you he is very frazzled, confused, and not sure what to think or what to do. You affect him, make him act different." Erina explained and Kiana stopped moving. After the exile, all she wanted to do was make her way through what was left of her life unnoticed. This new knowledge was making her insanely nervous. Especially since it just had to be Kavar.

"Why? I've done nothing to change him." Kiana thought out loud, but Erina turned to face the huntress. "Well there's that, but he doesn't know that." Kiana said with slight exasperation.

"But he could find out if you don't start covering your tracks better. He does tend to catch on to things rather quickly and easily." Erina countered and Kiana groaned when she realized the younger girl was right. She was lucky enough he hadn't said anything about it by now and she hadn't covered her tracks well at all.

"I know, I know. I could never, ever sneak out without him knowing two seconds later and catching me. It became rather annoying after a while." Kiana sighed. She was really going to have to try harder from now on.

"I help you if you want. For some reason you don't want him to know who you are and I'm starting to think that it has to be for a very good reason. As much as I hate hiding something from my master, I want to help you however I can. So if you ever need me for something, I'm here." Erina declared with deep conviction and Kiana was stunned by the young girl's show of devotion to someone she had just met and barely knew at all. The exile had forgotten what it was like to have a Jedi around again.

"Wow. Just…wow. Thank you." Kiana breathed and Erina smiled at her brightly with a slight nod as acknowledgment.

"Maybe you should go talk to him and make sure that he is okay. He did take off rather abruptly." Erina suggested and Kiana looked at her like the Padawan had grown a second head.

"I thought you said you were going to help me!"

"I am helping you! What would have Tyla done in this situation?" Erina asked and Kiana hesitated before answering.

"Ignore him for a little bit and then check up on him when it was apparent he wasn't going to talk for awhile unless I did something." The huntress admitted shamefully. Okay, so maybe she hadn't exactly been the nicest person alive, but she had tried! Well, most of the time.

Erina nodded triumphantly. "Exactly. If Kiana goes and checks up on him right now, it wouldn't be a very Tyla-like thing for you to do." She explained. Kiana paused for a moment before she sighed in defeat. The exile stood up, nodded at Erina, and left the room.

She walked to his room slowly, her brain still attempting to absorb everything. She knew that she had been acting like Tyla more that she wanted, but she hadn't thought that she had been that bad. Guess it was. Okay, she could do this. Don't act like Tyla. Shouldn't be to horribly hard. She stopped outside Kavar's door and took a deep breath before knocking.

"Can I come in?" Kiana called softly. He called her in and she walked inside the room with slight hesitation. Kavar was resting on his back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling blankly.

"You okay?" she asked and then mentally winced. She sounded so caring. She hadn't talked like that since her exile. So why was she acting caring to him of all people she could be caring to? She hadn't even talked to Jadowyn like that.

"I don't know. You confuse me Kiana. First you act frazzled and confused, then angry and defensive, and now you're caring. The only thing that doesn't change about you is that I never know what to expect from you." He turned his head so that he was gazing at her. "Why do you act like that?" He asked and Kiana stopped.

Why did she act like that? She had been betrayed so many times in the past that all she wanted was for everyone to stay away from her. It was her defense, a shield that nobody had ever tried to get past that she had known in the past four years. She lashed out to keep herself protected, and it typically worked. But what could she tell him?

"I've seen many people that I've known and cared about hurt and betrayed. Hurt and betrayed so bad that it's destroyed them from the inside out so that the only thing that is left is a broken, empty, soulless shell where vibrant people once were. So I keep all people away to avoid that ever happening to me." Kiana explained hesitantly. All of it was true and she didn't sound like Tyla. Tyla had been a lot more immature than that. So far, so good.

"But everybody is a betrayer sometimes and everybody gets betrayed in turn. If you go on that and that alone, you will never be able to be near anybody. Surely there has to be someone you can trust only a little." Kavar replied, moving his head so that he was looking up at the ceiling again. _The one person I trusted with everything betrayed me the worst. No, I can't trust. Not again._

"Trust can only lead to it being shattered. It's easier, and better, to not let anyone close to you at all." Kiana answered, her voice sad. She had gone from being a happy, full of life young girl to a jaded, scarred war veteran. It was truly pathetic.

Kavar turned again so that he was looking at her, but this time his eyes caught hers and she couldn't look away as he spoke. "But doesn't that make you the same as those broken shells you spoke of earlier? At least they lived, truly lived, for a time. If you never let anyone near you, you never get the chance to feel. Is that what you really want?" he questioned softly and Kiana was stuck.

For the longest time she had lived. She had loved him more than she had thought possible and she had been…happy. The word seemed so strange, so unfamiliar to her. But now, what was she? Betrayed and wounded.

"Better to be guarded and alone than broken and betrayed." Kiana finally settled on saying. She took yet another deep breath and walked a few steps forward. Kavar sat up and moved to the side of the bed so that she could sit next to him.

"Did you love her?" Kiana whispered her voice barely audible. She didn't know why she was asking this but it was already out in the open. Kavar turned to face the exile with a nod. There was no mistaking what she was talking about.

"I did. I loved her more than anything, and I lost her because of some very big, very stupid mistakes. And everyday I wish I could go back and redo them." He declared with a deep conviction she had never heard before. Once more silence reigned as she stared. If he had loved her so much, why had he done all of those things to her? He had messed up her life from the time of the war until right now! "Why am I even telling you all this?" he asked.

The huntress shrugged in reply. "I don't really know. Maybe it's because you just want to set your story straight. Maybe you just want to let someone to know the truth, even if telling it to someone like me will make no difference to the people that matter. At least you know the truth is out and in the open now." Kiana answered tentatively.

She had known for a very long time now that she no longer hated Kavar. But she had never forgiven the Jedi master. Kiana wasn't sure if she would ever actually forgive him. But did he actually mean what he was saying?

"I guess. Look, thanks for checking up on me. I did leave pretty fast and that must have been mildly strange." Kavar stood up and stretched slightly. He turned around and offered the huntress his hand. Kiana accepted the offer and he pulled the exile up. "We need to go anyway. We still have a Sith Lord to stop." He said with false excitement. Kiana rolled her eyes, their previous moment forgotten.

"Sure do, but it's still my bounty. I need so many more credits right now. This is the most I've eaten in awhile and that's saying something considering all I've had is alcohol. Lots and lots of alcohol, but it's still no substitute for food." She joked with a smile.

"What? Oh, I forgot. Let's get you some food!" Kavar ordered, dragging the pale-haired woman through the halls of the ship. They stopped inside the main hold and Kavar dropped her into a seat. He left the room and came back a minute later with some food rations.

"We'll get some real food once we land. These will have to do for now. Now eat." He commanded. Kiana smiled lightly as she unwrapped the so-called 'food.' They may taste like the back side of a bantha, but at least it was something in her stomach. He left to eat and moments later she felt the ship lift off and break orbit into hyperspace. Kavar came back and she looked up as she finished her last ration.

"We going to Kaisanein yet?" she asked, swallowing the last bit. Kavar shook his head no.

"Not yet. Something tells me that we should pick up more supplies first. And yes, that includes real food. I hate those rations. They taste absolutely horrible." He smiled. Kiana stretched deeply and yawned.

"Fine. But there better be some fighting soon. I haven't fought anything since I got on this ship and that's a funky change of pace for me. Usually everyday is a fight for survival for me." Kiana complained. After her exile she had focused on her combat training a lot more. She realized now that she had relied on the Force far to much as a Padawan and she also understood why Kavar hadn't let her use the Force a lot. There was no guarantee she would always be able to use it and now it was completely lost to her. Not only that, but she had learned real fast that you can't talk your way out of everything.

"You know, we've got a training room. You wouldn't get to kill anything but it's better than nothing." Kavar offered and Kiana looked up. Training. With him. Alone. Ooh, this was bound to end up bad. But did _Kiana _have any reason to say no? By every account she had every right to say yes. It would be a bit suspicious if she complained about wanting violence and then not taking a chance at it when it was offered to her.

"Fine, but you do realize that I'm going to kick your ass, right?" Kiana taunted. Kavar raised an eyebrow at her.

"I wasn't planning on going with you, but I can't resist a challenge." He replied. Kiana mentally reached out and slapped herself. _Way to go._

"Fine then, let's do this." She sighed dramatically, going back into the training room.

_Anything familiar belongs to LucasArts/Bioware/Obsidian. Tyla Moore/Kiana Shale belongs to Shadows of the Storm. Aurali Adrics/Leila Cross belong to Aurali Adrics._

Exiled © Shadows of the Storm


End file.
